Representing the 14th District of ILLINOIS

You are here

Geneva, IL – U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren (IL-14) today released the following statement regarding a letter he recently sent to Illinois leaders, including Governor Quinn, Attorney General Madigan, and legislative leaders from both parties, calling on them to join every other state in the nation and enact concealed-carry legislation.

“I was dismayed to learn that Illinois is now the only state in the nation that does not recognize its citizens’ Second Amendment right to concealed carry,” said Rep.Hultgren. “The Supreme Court has twice affirmed self-defense as a fundamental right in recent years, and it past time that Illinoisans enjoy that right as every other American does. I hope Governor Quinn and the legislature will pass concealed carry legislation in a timely manner so that Illinoisans can enjoy the legal right to protect themselves.”

In the letter, Hultgren detailed recent Supreme Court decisions from The District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) and McDonald v. Chicago (2010). In the case from 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual's right to possess a firearm. In the second case, from 2010, they ruled that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self defense in one's home is fully applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment.

“The U.S. Supreme Court has made it clear that our Constitution guarantees the fundamental, individual right of self-defense for all Americans,” said Chris Cox, Executive Director of the National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action. “Crime is not limited to the home -- it can happen anywhere. Good people across this country should be allowed to defend themselves wherever they have a legal right to be. We are grateful for the leadership of Rep. Hultgren and ten of his colleagues in urging the Governor, the Attorney General and other members of the state leadership to enact a law that will allow law-abiding Illinois residents to protect themselves and their loved ones from criminals.”